In a major boost to indigenous defence manufacturing, the defence ministry allocated Rs 29,558.66 crore towards DRDO projects over the last three years. This was shared by Minister of State for Defence Sanjay Seth in a written reply to MP Tejasvi Surya in the Lok Sabha.
Among the key programmes is the Kaveri Derivative Engine (KDE), which will power India’s upcoming remotely piloted strike aircraft (IUCAV). Two projects have been sanctioned in this regard. They are: Flightworthy Kaveri Dry Engine development at a cost of Rs 472.42 crore, and technology demonstration of Kaveri Derivative ‘Dry’ Engine at Rs 251.17 crore.
The ministry is also introducing several structural reforms to enhance civil-military collaboration in the defence sector:
* Development-cum-Production Partners (DcPP) are being identified for faster prototyping and transition to production.
* Industries are being brought into the loop early through DRDO Industry Academia-Centre of Excellence (DIA-CoE) for rapid realisation of technologies developed in academic projects.
* CEMILAC (Centre for Military Airworthiness and Certification), DRDO’s certification agency, is coordinating with DGCA for unified certification norms for UAVs.
* It is also in touch with global certification agencies like EASA and ANAC, and OEMs such as Airbus and Embraer, to streamline civil-military aircraft certification in India.
* DRDO has signed MoUs with TIDEL Park Ltd and UPEIDA to boost Defence Industrial Corridors.
* 15 DRDO Industry Academia CoEs have been set up across India including at IISc and IITs.
* A new Transfer of Technology (ToT) policy offers zero ToT fee and zero royalty for supplies to Indian Armed Forces and government departments.
* DRDO’s test facilities have been opened to private industry under new SOPs.
* All DRDO patents are now available free of cost to promote Aatmanirbhar Bharat.
* The Technology Development Fund (TDF) continues to support Indian industries in developing innovative defence products.